Review
Clinical Neurology
Sarah K. Ashcroft, Daniel D. Ironside, Liam Johnson, Suzanne S. Kuys, Angelica G. Thompson-Butel
Summary: This systematic review and meta-analysis of 17 studies found that high intensity aerobic exercise can increase circulating BDNF concentrations, which may contribute to increased neuroplasticity in individuals poststroke.
Article
Biology
Laura J. Wagstaff, Jose A. Gomez-Sanchez, Shaline Fazal, Georg W. Otto, Alastair M. Kilpatrick, Kirolos Michael, Liam Y. N. Wong, Ki H. Ma, Mark Turmaine, John Svaren, Tessa Gordon, Peter Arthur-Farraj, Sergio Velasco-Aviles, Hugo Cabedo, Cristina Benito, Rhona Mirsky, Kristjan R. Jessen
Summary: After nerve injury, myelin and Remak Schwann cells reprogram to repair cells specialized for regeneration but fail in aging animals and during chronic denervation. Restoring Schwann cell c-Jun levels can restore regeneration to control levels, with potential gene candidates mediating this effect. This common mechanism of reduced c-Jun in Schwann cells regulates nerve repair success and failure during aging and chronic denervation.
Review
Clinical Neurology
Maria Grazia Di Benedetto, Catia Scassellati, Nadia Cattane, Marco Andrea Riva, Annamaria Cattaneo
Summary: This article conducted a systematic review on the relationship between childhood trauma and early life stress with psychiatric disorders, supporting the significant role of the neurotrophic factor BDNF in mediating this relationship.
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Natalie Prowse, Shawn Hayley
Summary: Studies suggest that microglia can modulate neuronal plasticity through brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is important due to its link with neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative pathology. Certain activated states of microglia are believed to play a role in maintaining the delicate balance of BDNF release onto neuronal synapses.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2021)
Review
Neurosciences
Siru Qin, Zichen Zhang, Yadan Zhao, Jingyi Liu, Jiwen Qiu, Yinan Gong, Wen Fan, Yongming Guo, Yi Guo, Zhifang Xu, Yang Guo
Summary: Acupuncture is recommended by the World Health Organization as an alternative and complementary method for the treatment of neurological deficits after ischemic stroke. It has been shown to promote neuroplasticity and improve symptoms such as dyskinesia, spasticity, cognitive impairment, and dysphagia.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jonna Nilsson, Maria Ekblom, Marcus Moberg, Martin Lovden
Summary: The interplay between biomarkers of neuroplasticity and cognitive ability in old age is not well understood. This study investigated the acute changes in plasma concentrations of certain biomarkers in response to exercise and cognitive training interventions and their relationship with cognitive performance. The findings suggest that certain biomarker profiles, such as higher mBDNF responsiveness coupled with lower cortisol responsiveness and higher pro-BDNF responsiveness, may be associated with better cognition in old age.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Lili Xie, Yuqin Yin, Larry Benowitz
Summary: CNTF gene therapy indirectly promotes optic nerve regeneration by increasing the expression of CCL5, and its beneficial effects are independent of CNTFRα but are affected by neutrophil and monocyte infiltration. Modulating the expression of CCR5 can also influence the effects of CNTF gene therapy.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Wouter A. J. Vints, Oron Levin, Nerijus Masiulis, Jeanine Verbunt, Charlotte C. M. van Laake-Geelen
Summary: Individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) may experience accelerated cognitive aging, and myokines released during exercise may improve brain health and cognition. However, there is currently a lack of research on the effects of myokines on cognitive function in individuals with SCI, indicating a need for further investigation.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Seung-Jun Lee, Jinah Park, Dong-Joon Lee, Keishi Otsu, Pyunggang Kim, Seiya Mizuno, Min-Jung Lee, Hyun-Yi Kim, Hidemitsu Harada, Satoru Takahashi, Seong-Jin Kim, Han-Sung Jung
Summary: This study investigated the role of MAST4 in spermatogenesis in mice, revealing its importance in the localization to Sertoli cells, phosphorylation of ERM, and maintenance of SSC self-renewal.
CELL DEATH AND DIFFERENTIATION
(2021)
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Beatrice Arosio, Franca Rosa Guerini, Richard C. Oude Voshaar, Ivan Aprahamian
Summary: This article summarizes the neurotrophin hypothesis of depression and the relationship between blood BDNF concentration and MDD. Existing research suggests that changes in BDNF levels are associated with clinical manifestations of depression, but cannot yet be used as a biomarker in clinical practice.
FRONTIERS IN BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Review
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Helia Mojtabavi, Zoha Shaka, Sara Momtazmanesh, Atra Ajdari, Nima Rezaei
Summary: The study confirms that stroke significantly decreases BDNF levels, affecting cognition, affect, and motor function. Patients with depression have lower BDNF levels. Physical training has a short-term positive effect on BDNF levels, while the long-term effects are unclear. Repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation has no effect on BDNF levels.
JOURNAL OF TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Julian O. Kimura, Marcela Bolanos, Lorenzo Ricci, Mansi Srivastava
Summary: This study reveals the cellular mechanism and molecular trajectory for the formation of adult pluripotent stem cells (aPSCs) during embryonic development. By utilizing lineage tracing and single-cell transcriptome profiling, the researchers identified a molecular trajectory for neoblast formation and showed that aPSCs derive from one lineage instead of multiple tissue-specific lineages.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Haley C. Dresang, Denise Y. Harvey, Sharon X. Xie, Priyanka P. Shah-Basak, Laura DeLoretta, Rachel Wurzman, Shreya Y. Parchure, Daniela Sacchetti, Olufunsho Faseyitan, Falk W. Lohoff, Roy H. Hamilton
Summary: This study evaluated the impact of a common polymorphism (Val(66)Met) in the gene for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) on variability in post-stroke aphasia severity, and found that interactions between BDNF polymorphism and neurophysiological indicators of neuroplasticity can improve predictions of aphasia severity.
NEUROREHABILITATION AND NEURAL REPAIR
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Sisi Mi, Zhuo Chang, Xue Wang, Jiaxin Gao, Yu Liu, Wenjia Liu, Wangxiao He, Zhongquan Qi
Summary: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a severe injury of the central nervous system, causing functional dysfunction and paralysis in millions of patients. A bioactive scaffold, called a spinal cord assembly (SCA), was created using cell-sheet technology and stem cells. This scaffold released neurotrophic exosomes, promoting neuronal regeneration, axonal extension, angiogenesis, and inhibiting glial scar formation in a SCI rat model.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Lucas Andreo, Raquel Agnelli Mesquita-Ferrari, Liliana Grenho, Pedro de Sousa Gomes, Sandra Kalil Bussadori, Kristianne Porta Santos Fernandes, Maria Helena Fernandes
Summary: The study aimed to evaluate the effects of red and near-infrared low-level laser therapy on Schwann cells, finding that after irradiation, the cells showed increased mitochondrial activity, gene expression, normal morphology, and enhanced cell migration.
PHOTOCHEMISTRY AND PHOTOBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Lucia Caffino, Francesca Mottarlini, Giorgia Targa, Michel M. M. Verheij, Judith Homberg, Fabio Fumagalli
Summary: The study found that the deletion of serotonin transporter (SERT) may sensitize the glutamatergic synapses of the nucleus accumbens core to long-term but not short-term intake of cocaine.
BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Lucia Caffino, Francesca Mottarlini, Gianmaria Zita, Dawid Gawlinski, Kinga Gawlinska, Karolina Wydra, Edmund Przegalinski, Fabio Fumagalli
Summary: Drug addiction is a devastating disorder that poses a huge economic and social burden on modern society, with adolescents being particularly vulnerable. Research has shown that exposure to cocaine during adolescence confers a vulnerable endophenotype primarily by inducing changes in neuroplasticity.
BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Irena Smaga, Karolina Wydra, Kacper Witek, Paulina Surpwla, Agata Suder, Renata Pieniazek, Lucia Caffino, Fabio Fumagalli, Marek Sanak, Malgorzata Filip
Summary: This study demonstrated that Tat-NR2B9c attenuated cocaine seeking behavior and cue-induced reinstatement in rats, while also reducing levels of GluN2B/PSD95 complexes in the ventral hippocampus. These findings suggest that disrupting GluN2B/PSD95 complexes during cocaine abstinence and extinction training may be a helpful strategy in reducing reinstatement of cocaine-seeking behavior.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Lucia Caffino, Francesca Mottarlini, Giorgia Targa, Michel M. M. Verheij, Fabio Fumagalli, Judith R. Homberg
Summary: This study investigates the influence of SERT deletion on glutamate homeostasis in the NAc, and finds that SERT deletion leads to a reduction in glutamate signaling and further dysregulation in the glutamatergic synapse after cocaine self-administration.
BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Francesca Mottarlini, Giorgia Targa, Giorgia Bottan, Benedetta Tarenzi, Fabio Fumagalli, Lucia Caffino
Summary: Patients with anorexia nervosa show altered neural activity and connectivity in the fronto-striatal circuit. Low glutamatergic transmission and abnormal excitability in the mPFC may contribute to cognitive deficits. After recovery, ABA rats still exhibit reduced synaptic stability associated with cognitive dysfunction.
JOURNAL OF NEUROCHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rosa Mastrogiacomo, Gabriella Trigilio, Celine Devroye, Daniel Dautan, Valentina Ferretti, Gabriele Losi, Lucia Caffino, Genny Orso, Roberto Marotta, Federica Maltese, Enrica Vitali, Gessica Piras, Alessia Forgiarini, Giada Pacinelli, Annamaria Lia, Debora A. Rothmond, John L. Waddington, Filippo Drago, Fabio Fumagalli, Maria Antonietta De Luca, Gian Marco Leggio, Giorgio Carmignoto, Cynthia S. Weickert, Francesca Manago, Francesco Papaleo
Summary: The abnormal activity of astrocytes is related to the dopaminergic abnormalities in schizophrenia. Dys1A isoform has a significant impact on basal ganglia-related behaviors and dopaminergic regulation in astrocytes, but has minimal effect on cortical functioning.
MOLECULAR PSYCHIATRY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Francesca Mottarlini, Marco Fumagalli, Fernando Castillo-Diaz, Stefano Piazza, Giorgia Targa, Enrico Sangiovanni, Barbara Pacchetti, Mikael H. Sodergren, Mario Dell'Agli, Fabio Fumagalli, Lucia Caffino
Summary: CBD can be found in the rat brain, specifically in the medial prefrontal cortex, and has a dose-dependent modulation of BDNF, suggesting its potential therapeutic value in psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Francesca Mottarlini, Beatrice Rizzi, Giorgia Targa, Fabio Fumagalli, Lucia Caffino
Summary: The study found that the BDNF system is downregulated in the amygdala of adolescent female rats under conditions that mimic the anorexic phenotype in humans, potentially contributing to the altered emotional processing observed in AN patients. The persistent AN-induced changes of the BDNF system in the amygdala might explain the onset of comorbid psychiatric disorders that persist in patients even beyond recovery from AN.
FRONTIERS IN BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Sabrine Bilel, Erica Zamberletti, Lucia Caffino, Micaela Tirri, Francesca Mottarlini, Raffaella Arfe, Mario Barbieri, Sarah Beggiato, Federica Boccuto, Tatiana Bernardi, Sara Casati, Anna T. Brini, Daniela Parolaro, Tiziana Rubino, Luca Ferraro, Fabio Fumagalli, Matteo Marti
Summary: This study investigates the long-lasting effects of repeated exposure to synthetic cannabinoid JWH-018, and finds that it leads to the manifestation of psychotic-like symptoms accompanied by alterations in neuroplasticity and changes in the endocannabinoid system.
BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Giorgia Targa, Francesca Mottarlini, Beatrice Rizzi, Damiana Leo, Lucia Caffino, Fabio Fumagalli
Summary: Dopamine overactivity reduces the translation and localization of cortical AMPA receptors through altered vesicular sorting. The decreased expression of anchoring proteins and structural markers indicates synaptic instability. Hyperdopaminergia significantly alters the homeostatic plasticity of AMPA receptors, leading to a destabilized and depotentiated AMPA-mediated glutamatergic neurotransmission in the prefrontal cortex.
Article
Neurosciences
Paola Brivio, Matteo Audano, Maria Teresa Gallo, Eleonora Miceli, Piotr Gruca, Magdalena Lason, Ewa Litwa, Fabio Fumagalli, Mariusz Papp, Nico Mitro, Francesca Calabrese
Summary: By using metabolomic approach, the study found that differences in energy metabolite concentration may underlie the vulnerability and resilience in an animal model of mood disorder. The study also showed that the antidepressant venlafaxine may normalize the pathological phenotype by acting at metabolic level. These findings provide novel perspectives on diagnostic markers and preventive strategies for depression, as well as potential drug targets.
NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)